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Comedian Conan O'Brien to Host Oscars

(FILES) US television host and comedian Conan O'Brien visits the briefing room of the White House December 15, 2023, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski / AFP)
(FILES) US television host and comedian Conan O'Brien visits the briefing room of the White House December 15, 2023, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski / AFP)
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Comedian Conan O'Brien to Host Oscars

(FILES) US television host and comedian Conan O'Brien visits the briefing room of the White House December 15, 2023, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski / AFP)
(FILES) US television host and comedian Conan O'Brien visits the briefing room of the White House December 15, 2023, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski / AFP)

Comedian Conan O'Brien, a former late-night television host, will be the emcee for the Oscars for the first time, taking over from fellow funnyman Jimmy Kimmel, organizers said Friday.
O'Brien, 61, will preside over Hollywood's biggest night next March, hoping to maintain -- and even perhaps improve -- on an uptick in ratings seen earlier this year, AFP reported.
"America demanded it and now it's happening: Taco Bell's new Cheesy Chalupa Supreme. In other news, I'm hosting the Oscars," O'Brien quipped in a statement from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Academy CEO Bill Kramer and President Janet Yang called O'Brien "the perfect person to help lead our global celebration of film with his brilliant humor, his love of movies and his live TV expertise."
"His remarkable ability to connect with audiences will bring viewers together to do what the Oscars do best -- honor the spectacular films and filmmakers of this year," they said in the statement.
Executive producers Raj Kapoor and Katy Mullan hailed O'Brien as "incredibly witty, charismatic and funny."
O'Brien, a five-time Emmy winner, hosted several late-night talk shows, including "The Tonight Show," and currently hosts the podcast "Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend." He previously served as a writer for "Saturday Night Live."
Kimmel first hosted the Oscars in 2017 and 2018. He was then brought back in 2023 after the previous year's ceremony featured actor Will Smith's infamous on-stage slap of Chris Rock. Kimmel also hosted the gala this past March.
Almost 20 million tuned in for the last Oscars -- a welcome upward trend for organizers of live awards shows, which have been shedding viewers as they compete for viewers with streamers and social media highlight clips.
The 97th Academy Awards will be held on March 2, 2025 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood.

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Beyoncé Will Perform at Halftime of Ravens-Texans Christmas Day Game on Netflix

Beyoncé appears at a campaign event for Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris in Houston, on Oct. 25, 2024. (AP)
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Beyoncé Will Perform at Halftime of Ravens-Texans Christmas Day Game on Netflix

Beyoncé appears at a campaign event for Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris in Houston, on Oct. 25, 2024. (AP)
Beyoncé appears at a campaign event for Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris in Houston, on Oct. 25, 2024. (AP)

Beyoncé is coming to your home on Christmas — provided you have Netflix and are tuning in to the Baltimore Ravens-Houston Texans game.

Netflix announced late Sunday that the megastar would perform during halftime of a Christmas Day matchup in her hometown of Houston.

The streaming service didn't reveal details about the performance but teased that it would likely feature guest appearances from her “Cowboy Carter” album, which delivered her a leading 11 Grammy nominations earlier this month.

Netflix is streaming two NFL games this Christmas. Its first game will be between the Kansas City Chiefs and Pittsburgh Steelers — setting up the possibility that two of the world's biggest superstars will be part of the events. Taylor Swift, who is dating Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, has attended several of his games so far this year, and will be done with her Eras tour by Christmas.

The NFL games are the streaming giant's latest foray into sports and live programming. The announcement comes two days after Netflix streamed an evening of boxing that included a bout between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul that resulted with the YouTube influencer winning the fight.

That stream was marred by streaming and buffering problems for many users, with at least 85,000 viewers logging problems with the website Down Detector.

Beyoncé has performed at two Super Bowls, in 2013 and 2016.